Minnesota Session Laws - 1998, Regular Session

                            CHAPTER 283-S.F.No. 2729 
                  An act relating to highways; allowing advertisements, 
                  public art, and informational signs to be placed on 
                  bicycle racks and bicycle storage facilities on 
                  highway right-of-way; amending Minnesota Statutes 
                  1996, section 160.27, subdivision 5, and by adding a 
                  subdivision. 
        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
           Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 160.27, 
        subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
           Subd. 5.  [MISDEMEANORS.] Except for the actions of the 
        road authorities, their agents, employees, contractors, and 
        utilities in carrying out their duties imposed by law or 
        contract, and except as herein provided, it shall be unlawful to:
           (1) obstruct any highway or deposit snow or ice thereon; 
           (2) plow or perform any other detrimental operation within 
        the road right-of-way except in the preparation of the land for 
        planting permanent vegetative cover or as authorized under 
        section 160.232; 
           (3) erect a fence on the right-of-way of a trunk highway, 
        county state-aid highway, county highway or town road, except to 
        erect a lane fence to the ends of a livestock pass; 
           (4) erect or reconstruct driveway headwalls in or on the 
        right-of-way of a highway or road, except as may be allowed by 
        permit from the road authority imposing reasonable regulations 
        as are necessary to prevent interference with the construction, 
        maintenance, and safe use of the highway or road and its 
        appurtenances; 
           (5) dig any holes in any highway; except to locate markers 
        placed to identify sectional corner positions and private 
        boundary corners; 
           (6) remove any earth, gravel or rock from any highway; 
           (7) obstruct any ditch draining any highway or drain any 
        noisome materials into any ditch; 
           (8) place or maintain any building or structure within the 
        limits of any highway; 
           (9) place or maintain any advertisement within the limits 
        of any highway, except as provided in subdivision 7; 
           (10) paint, print, place, or affix any advertisement or any 
        object within the limits of any highway, except as provided in 
        subdivision 7; 
           (11) deface, mar, damage, or tamper with any structure, 
        work, material, equipment, tools, signs, markers, signals, 
        paving, guardrails, drains, or any other highway appurtenance on 
        or along any highway; 
           (12) remove, injure, displace, or destroy right-of-way 
        markers, or reference or witness monuments, or markers placed to 
        preserve section or quarter section corners; 
           (13) improperly place or fail to place warning signs and 
        detour signs as provided by law; 
           (14) drive over, through, or around any barricade, fence, 
        or obstruction erected for the purpose of preventing traffic 
        from passing over a portion of a highway closed to public travel 
        or to remove, deface, or damage any such barricade, fence, or 
        obstruction. 
           Any violation of this subdivision is a misdemeanor. 
           Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 160.27, is 
        amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
           Subd. 7.  [BICYCLE RACKS AND BICYCLE STORAGE 
        FACILITIES.] In cities of the first class, advertisements, 
        public art, and informational signs may be placed and maintained 
        on bicycle racks and bicycle storage facilities, and on any 
        enclosure around them, if (1) a road authority has authorized 
        the bicycle racks and storage facilities to be placed within the 
        right-of-way of a public highway, (2) the city has recommended 
        and the road authority has authorized the placement of 
        advertisements, public art, and informational signs on the 
        bicycle racks and bicycle storage facilities, and (3) the 
        placement does not create an unsafe situation.  Advertisements, 
        public art, and information signs authorized under this 
        subdivision are subject to the terms and conditions imposed by 
        the road authority authorizing their placement. 
           Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
           Sections 1 and 2 are effective the day following final 
        enactment. 
           Presented to the governor March 13, 1998 
           Signed by the governor March 16, 1998, 10:00 a.m.